Scrivens, Dowse rating centuries as Sunrisers outshine Blaze
Sunrisers 292 for five (Scrivens 107, Dowse 105) beat Blaze 265 (Boyce 104, Okay. Bryce 51, Gray 4-31) by 30 runs
Maiden List A centuries for 19-year-old Grace Scrivens and 22-year-old Ariana Dowse in a 200-run file partnership set the platform for a 30-run win for Sunrisers over The Blaze within the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy at Loughborough, the place the house facet slipped to defeat regardless of a maiden List 100 from Georgie Boyce.
Kathryn Bryce made 51, sharing an 113-run stand with Boyce, however skiddy seamer Eva Gray took a career-best 4 for 31 as The Blaze have been dismissed for 265 to maintain Sunrisers in with an out of doors likelihood of qualifying for subsequent week’s finals due to a 3rd straight win.
Having constructed up a giant lead within the early a part of the competitors, the East Midlands regional facet have already certified for not less than the semi-final eliminator.
But three defeats of their final 4 matches have seen that lead minimize to only 5 factors, leaving them liable to being denied a direct path to the ultimate by Southern Vipers, who they tackle at Loughborough in Saturday’s last spherical group video games, through which Sunrisers are away to Northern Diamonds.
Dowse, making solely her third look for Sunrisers, hit 13 fours and a six in her 110-ball 105, with England Under-19 captain Scrivens, who took her mixture on this yr’s competitors to 387, making 107 from 136 deliveries with 9 fours. Their 37-over partnership is the largest by runs for any wicket for the reason that 50-overs-a-side Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy launched in 2020.
The Blaze selected to area however provided too many simple scoring alternatives as Sunrisers reached 47 with out loss within the opening powerplay and 112 by the midway level, Dowse having been first to first to fifty off 61 balls with seven fours earlier than Scrivens joined her with 5 boundaries from 75.
Soon after Dowse had lofted Kirstie Gordon’s left-arm spin over her head for the primary six of the day, the partnership handed the 153 mark set by Ella McCaughan and Georgia Adams for Southern Vipers in opposition to Lightning – as The Blaze have been then recognized – at Derby final season because the competition-best for the primary wicket.
It went on to eclipse the competitors file for any wicket, beating the 186 placed on by third-wicket pair Fran Wilson and Orla Prendergast for Western Storm in opposition to Thunder in April this yr.
Only after that was there any suggestion of a Blaze breakthrough, Dowse nicely out of her floor on 97 when wicketkeeper Sarah Bryce’s shy for an tried run-out missed.
The let-off gave Dowse the chance to hammer Kathryn Bryce down the bottom for her thirteenth 4 to deliver up what had in any other case been a flawless hundred off 103 balls.
She fell within the subsequent over, caught at lengthy on off Grace Ballinger, one wicket bringing one other for The Blaze as new batter Mady Villiers was caught behind making an attempt to reverse sweep Lucy Higham’s off-spin. Scrivens accomplished her century from 127 balls with eight fours.
Seamer Teresa Graves picked up two wickets in an over as The Blaze mounted a fightback of kinds, avenging a six within the earlier over by bowling Jo Gardner earlier than beating Scrivens’ reverse sweep for a leg earlier than.
Kathryn Bryce eliminated Gray through a top-edged sweep however Amara Carr and Florence Miller added 37 off the final 22 balls to set a formidable 296 for The Blaze to win.
That job regarded nonetheless harder after Lizelle Lee, leg earlier than to Gray, and Sarah Bryce, bowled when Kate Coppack nipped one away to clip the off bail, have been out throughout the first 25 balls. Marie Kelly, again from a stint with Trinbago Knight Riders within the Women’s Caribbean Premier League, began nicely however miscued Jodi Grewcock’s leg spin to be caught at additional cowl.
Boyce and Kathryn Bryce saved the house facet firmly within the hunt by adopting the optimistic method that had served Scrivens and Dowse so nicely, scoring at 5 an over so as to add 113 for the fourth wicket. Boyce introduced up her half-century from 68 balls with 5 fours, Bryce getting there in 56 after doubling her boundary tally with three fours in the identical Coppack over.
But a decisive breakthrough got here when Gray changed Koppack and trapped Bryce in entrance with the primary ball of her spell, additionally dismissing Teresa Graves leg earlier than. Boyce pressed on into the 80s however when Josie Groves holed out to lengthy on off Kelly Castle, The Blaze have been 205 for six, nonetheless 91 brief, needing virtually eight an over.
Boyce accomplished her ton from 122 balls with 9 fours however after she was run out, Blaze misplaced their final 4 wickets for 18 as Higham, Gordon and Sophie Munro, compelled to look for boundaries, all discovered fielders.